As you look out across your community’s main street, business districts and industrial parks, you should ask yourself, “What can we as a municipality be doing to help these businesses be more successful?” Running a business is very difficult, yet it is the machine that keeps the local economy going. The two most critical pieces to your community’s success, tax base and jobs, are provided by local business. How can you be of service to the businesses in your community?
Aside from providing the typical public safety, snow plowing, garbage pick-up, municipal utilities, how can you provide additional value to support the businesses in your community?
First, get to know your businesses. Visit them, find out their concerns; find out why they chose to locate in your community and why they would leave. Find out where their employees live and why. Working together to retain the existing businesses you have today will make the new business attraction effort more efficient and productive in the future.
Feel free to create incentives or other policy packages to attract new employers, and celebrate a new large company with ribbon cuttings and stories in the local media. But make sure to similarly celebrate your local businesses’ accomplishments with the same flair in an effort to show them your appreciation for the tax dollars they generate and the jobs they create. Build your community’s reputation for being business friendly. This will go a long way toward encouraging a second look from an outside company wishing to locate in the area.
Other ways to support your local businesses include 1) adopting business-friendly, efficient approval processes and policies, 2) providing stellar customer service throughout the permitting process, 3) working with businesses to develop solutions to problems, not just enforcing ordinances, 4) hosting seminars for business with helpful advice about new laws or procedures, 5) providing entrepreneurship training, 6) providing market information to your businesses, 7) facilitating networking opportunities, 8 ) offering ideas on financing options for businesses utilizing village, city, county, state and federal programs and 9) other ideas based on their individual responses to you when you meet with them.
It’s important for your business community to see you as a partner in their efforts to support the residents and keep the local economy running. Even if you partner with the local Chamber or other public/private partnership, it’s worth the effort.
